The Senate voted 24-8 on Monday to prohibit cities and counties from enacting ordinances that prohibit discrimination on a basis not contained in state law.
If enacted, the measure would make Arkansas the second state to place such a restriction. The proposal now heads to the House.
The measure is being pushed in reaction to a Fayetteville ordinance that voters repealed in December expanding the city’s anti-discrimination protections.
The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, said the proposal is a thinly-veiled attempt to discriminate because of sexual orientation.
“This anti-LGBT bill is aimed at punishing the Fayetteville mayor and city council who sought to provide all of the city’s residents with non-discrimination protections.” HRC spokesman Hubert Tate said.
Republican Sen. Bart Hester, who proposed the legislation, said it is intended to standardize laws across the state, which he said is just as important as civil rights.
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The proposal was approved on a mostly party line vote, with three of the Senate’s 11 Democrats voting for the bill. The state Democratic Party issued a statement opposing the measure, and the top Democrat in the chamber portrayed the restriction as hypocritical compared to Republicans’ rhetoric.
“If Washington passed something like this and passed it down to the states, we would scream about federal overreach,” said Senate Minority Leader Keith Ingram.
The Arkansas Municipal League hasn’t taken a position on the measure yet, though its attorney has expressed concerns about its impact. Hester said he’s open to changing the measure to address their concerns. Fayetteville Mayor Lioneld Jordan said he opposes the measure.
“I believe that every city should have the right to pass ordinances that they think is best for their city, particularly anti-discrimination ordinances,” Jordan said.
Hester’s legislation wouldn’t apply to rules or policies that only affect employees of a local government.
Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson said he’s still reviewing Hester’s proposal and said he understands the concerns about taking away local control of cities and counties.
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The HRC said Tennessee is the only other state with such a restriction. Tennessee lawmakers approved the measure in 2011, effectively voiding a Nashville ordinance barring companies that discriminate against gays and lesbians from doing business with the city. A state appeals court dismissed a lawsuit against the restriction last year.
Texas lawmakers are considering several similar proposals after Houston, Fort Worth, Austin and San Antonio passed anti-bias protections for gays and lesbians.
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